She Is The Darkness

42

Lady had come in without me being told. I had no trouble getting in to see her. That made me wonder if it was going to be easy to get out.

She had questions of her own. "What are we doing now, Murgen? What's his game this time?"

I halted one step into the presence, mouth open. There had been changes since last I saw her. This was not the Lady with whom I had ridden south. This was not the woman who had seemed so haunted in front of the Dandha Presh. This creature was the Lady of olden times resurrected, a being of such terrible power it had trouble constraining itself in a presentable form.

"What the hell happened?"

"Murgen."

"What?" I squeaked. I reminded myself that I was the Annalist. The Annalist is fearless. He stands aside from squabbles within the Company. He is not intimidated by his brothers. He records the truth.

She scared me anyway.

"I want to know—"

"Anything you want to know, you'd better ask the Old Man. I couldn't tell you even if I was as goofy as Willow Swan. He don't tell me anything, either. He's still keeping it all inside his head. You seen that place over there? Worse than the Tower at Charm. He hasn't paid any attention to it since we got here. I haven't seen him do much of anything. Longshadow and Howler haven't done much, either, though."

"It's frustrating."

"Yeah. And maybe not even very smart considering what shape we'd be in if the Stranglers got him."

"Less likely than you think."

"Because of Soulcatcher?"

"Yes."

"She can't be everywhere any more than you can. And they call them the Deceivers for a reason." I hoped my voice was not squeaking. I was trying to play the fearless man.

"None of that is why you wanted to see me."

"No. I've got a problem. My dreams are getting worse! They're really bad now. I want to know how to shut them out."

"I haven't found a way. You have to learn to remember what they are. Has Kina been calling you?"

"I don't think so. It's more like she's passing through my dreams and doesn't notice me if I lie real still. Or maybe I'm eavesdropping on someone else's nightmares."

"Tell me about them."

I told her.

"Those are pretty much the dreams I've always had. Mostly I'm on the plain anymore."

"Are there crows there?"

"Crows? No. There isn't anything alive there."

I considered. "Actually, what I said before isn't quite true. She does seem to be aware of me specifically. The other night I got led through a version of the plain dream where I saw my wife. I talked to Sarie. The implication was there that I could get her back."

"That's new. For me the horrors just get worse. I think they're supposed to overwhelm me eventually."

I had a feeling she was not telling the whole truth, either. I said, "I find it hard to believe that she could feed me anything worse than what I've seen in real life. Knowing what she's trying to do—"

"She managed to use me, Murgen. Because I thought I knew what she was doing. But I didn't. She is the Queen of Deceivers. I wasn't her Daughter of Night at all. I was just a brood mare who was going to carry a Deceiver messiah for her. Don't make the mistake I made. If she really has noticed you, you be very, very careful. And keep me posted."

I grunted.

"Did you keep track of times when you thought you sensed Kina?"

"Uh... " I had. But most of the time she came near me I was out with Smoke. "Not very well." I gave her a couple of times that seemed harmless.

"That isn't much help. Control your emotions. Your wife would be an obvious way to manipulate you. You have any idea why?"

"I'd guess the standard."

"Of course. Hints pile up but we never get the story. The Lance of Passion. Only the thing's never shown any special properties."

It had, but in a time and manner I could not explain without exposing Smoke. Croaker stuck Howler with it once, just a flesh wound, but the little wizard almost died. "Maybe we don't really have the Lance. People might just think we do."

She murmured, "Is this another complicated deceit?"

I asked, "How do I stop the dreaming?"

"Weren't you listening? You don't."

"I don't think I'm strong enough just to live with them."

"You learn. Mine went away after the baby was born. But not for long. I think Kina forgot to sever the connection."

"Maybe Narayan was supposed to do that when he took your daughter."

"Of course he was."

"I didn't mean to remind you of—"

"I don't need reminding. I remember just fine. Every minute of every hour. And someday soon I plan to discuss it with Narayan, up close and personal." When she said that she seemed as nasty as Kina herself, though maybe you had to be there and had to know her history to enjoy the full impact. "He's going to get his Year of the Skulls now. He's run out of places to hide."

"You've seen Overlook. You think he needs to hide?"

Before she answered Blade shoved his head into the ragged tent. "A Strangler just took a crack at Willow. Willow's having a little trouble breathing but he'll be all right."

"You take the assassin alive?" Lady asked.

I eased toward the exit. Her mood was getting blacker. I did not want her pressing me hard.

Blade grinned. "He's in perfect health. Though he'd have a heart attack if he could."

I began easing around Blade. Lady gave me an eyeball-the-bug look that said she thought we ought to talk more later. I might consider staying out of her way. Maybe I had been too open with her already.

I stayed at a distance but watched. Lady's interrogation methods were deft, vicious and effective. The lesson was not lost on any witnesses.

Within minutes the Strangler admitted that he had infiltrated the camp-follower crowd after our victory at Charandaprash. The order had come from Narayan Singh himself. Willow Swan had been his primary target. Other red rumel men had been assigned other targets. They, too, had concealed themselves among the camp followers. They had been directed by the Daughter of Night herself to be very careful executing their missions. The Children of Kina had become so few that part of their obligation to their goddess now was to preserve themselves for her sake.

Lady knew just how to charm a man into talking. One of those things you learn when you are around forever, I suppose. One of those things people like Longshadow would like to mine out of your head.

She was so effective the Strangler abandoned hope of his eternal reward to tell her names.

I took a walk as Blade began organizing a throat-cutting expedition.

Just to underscore her disaffection with them Lady strangled one of the Deceivers herself. She used her own black scarf, taken from a black rumel man years ago. Every Deceiver knew the tale.

She sent her messages thus.

Crows took off in multitudes.

By way of conversation with Narayan Singh, Lady had the heads of the Deceivers put on lances and carried across to Overlook.

Croaker joined me. "That's my sweetie," he said, shaking his head. Like he would have been kinder had he gotten to those men first.

He knew what I was thinking. "A lady doesn't murder people in polite company." He grinned.

"What polite company? The Company ain't polite. And I think it was a very Lady-like thing she did."

"Yeah." He seemed almost cheerful about it all.